Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, this period in our orders of the day is usually taken up by Yellowknife Members to recognize their constituents because I don't very often have constituents come all the way here from Iqaluit. I'd still like to take this opportunity to recognize a familiar face back in his old seat, Mr. Ben McDonald, who works for the Union of Northern Workers. Thank you.

---Applause

Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, oral questions. Mr. Koe.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday my colleague, Mr. Antoine, asked the Minister of Economic Development and Tourism about the status of the review of the tourism zone associations. I, too, have concerns about this study and some of the current events that have posed questions about the consultants who were hired to do this study. When the call for proposals was advertised last fall, one of the conditions included was as follows: "Clause 6.7, schedule. The consultant must be prepared to begin work immediately upon reward of this contract and is required to have all work completed and approved no later than March 31, 1995."

Mr. Speaker, March 31, 1995 has come and gone, and here we are awaiting results of this study. Can the Minister advise us if the contractors have lived up to the terms and conditions of the contract to study tourism zone associations?

Minister of Economic Development and Tourism, Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Later on today, I will be tabling an executive summary of the study and the review that Mr. Koe is referring to. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Koe.

Thank you. I look forward to that review. I also understand that currently the department is initiating an interim consultation process with the Northwest Territories tourism operators to assist in the creation of new representatives for both east and west tourism industry organizations.

Mr. Speaker, I agree that there should be two separate organizations, one in the east and one in the west, but I would like to hear why the department is carrying out another consultative process while you still do not have the results of the one that was supposed to be completed for March 31st.

Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don't see it as a consultative process, I see it as an initiative in the private sector and they are both involved in the tourist associations and it would be driven by them. As I said earlier, I believe yesterday, in response to a question asked by Mr. Antoine, the Western Arctic Tourism Association is trying to pull together all the zones in the western Arctic to meet to determine: one, if they concur with the report; two, what action they are going to take, if it is necessary to develop a Western Arctic Tourism Association; and, three, how are we going to live within our fiscal means in terms of the reductions in the OPPLAN and the budgets. Thank you.

Supplementary, Mr. Koe.

I am glad it is being driven by the private sector, but the letter was signed by the deputy minister of the Department of Economic Development and Tourism. So, the interim consulting process, as it is called, has asked for some tourism operators to participate in a marketing advisory group, a meeting that has been proposed for April 20th. And the call letter requesting participants states that the tourism zone review will be complete in April. Now with these studies and meetings going on, can the Minister assure us that a review of the tourism associations and tourism zones and organizations will be complete by April 30, 1995?

Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not familiar with the letter that the honourable Member is talking about, so I cannot talk to that letter as I don't have it in front of me. But I want to assure Members that any development with respect to changes in the zones or changes in the tourism associations will be: one, driven by the private sector; two, reflective of their needs; and, three, has to meet the fiscal conditions that we are all working under. In the OPPLAN we have already reduced the money for the zones from $600,000 to $400,000.

There was a meeting last weekend in Iqaluit with the Nunavut tourism zone associations, in an effort to provide some guidance and instruction to the department as to how they would see the -- I think this is what they called it -- Travel Nunavut Association take place. I am confident that the industry in the west will do the same and that we will respond accordingly. Thank you.

Thank you. Supplementary, Mr. Koe.

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. As I mentioned, the call for the marketing advisory group meeting was made by letter and was sent directly to tourism operators. In the western Arctic tourism zone letters were sent to five operators, and out of the five only three are currently active. I believe that letters were not sent to the other 50 or more operators, including a zone association, aboriginal groups, hotels, restaurants, and airline services. So I would like to ask the Minister, if he believes that tourism operators should be involved in decision making on tourism activities in the Northwest Territories, should they not be included in the consultative process which his department is carrying on?

Mr. Todd.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If we included everybody that the honourable Member wishes to include, we would not have any money to deliver the program. Thank you.

Item 6, oral questions. Mr. Patterson.

Mr. Speaker, Members know that I have been concerned about the gutting of the legal interpreting program by the Minister of Justice, through his department. I am told that there is a plan to transfer this program to Arctic College. Therefore, I would like to ask the Minister for Education, Culture and Employment, how will Arctic College deliver this program? Thank you.

Minister of Education, Culture and Employment, Mr. Nerysoo.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. There is no plan at this particular juncture to transfer the responsibility to Arctic College -- we should say Aurora College and Nunavut Arctic College -- mainly because the assessment that is being done is to determine who and how we will deliver the matter of training. Presently there are five agencies involved in training: Aurora College; Nunavut Arctic College; the Department of Health and Social Services; the Department of Justice; and, the Department of Education, Culture and Employment.

The problem that we have is that we need to determine and rationalize the delivery of training for interpreters/translators, whether they are in the field of health, justice, or interpreter/translation services for the Assembly. Our task now is to rationalize that and we are making every effort. Once that is done, we will be able to deliver the program in a more rational and better fashion.

Thank you. Item 6, oral questions. Supplementary, Mr. Patterson.